Used car rankings from MOT data
Most reliable cars over 120,000 miles
We ranked 64 cars by how often they failed MOTs taken with over 120,000 miles on the clock, each against all cars at the same age and mileage. From 8,923,416 DVSA MOT tests in Great Britain, 2022 to 2025.
MOT data updated
First in this list (n=247,563)28.4%
All cars, same age and mileage41.3%
Difference31% lower
MOT tests used8,923,416
First in this list: BMW 5 Series.
How this ranking works
- Data: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal tests in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales), 2022 to 2025. Northern Ireland tests its cars separately and is not included. A fail is a test marked fail or passed after a repair at the test station.
- Measure: share of MOTs failed by tests taken with over 120,000 miles on the clock, pooled over every age with enough tests and compared with all cars at the same age and mileage.
- Order: by the fail rate divided by the rate for all cars at the same age and mileage, shown as the difference in per cent. Fail rates rise with age, so a ratio keeps a model seen only at older ages from looking better than it is.
- Comparison: all cars means every class 4 MOT test except vans, pickups, taxis, campers, van-based people carriers, motorhome and minibus bases and used imports, weighted to each row's own mix of ages.
- Thresholds: every age and mileage band behind a row here has at least 5,000 tests. A model generation is ranked only with at least 3 ages of 1,000 tests or more, and a row needs at least 3 age and mileage cells in this list. A list is published only with at least 10 ranked rows.
- Vans, pickups, taxis, campers, van-based people carriers, motorhome and minibus bases, and models sold here mainly as used imports are left out of car lists.
- Years in brackets are the first-use years of a model generation.
The ranking
| # | Model | MOT fail rate | All cars, same age and mileage | Difference | Ages | Tests (n) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BMW 5 SeriesCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 28.4% | 41.3% | 31% lower | 8 to 20 | 247,563 |
| 2 | Land Rover Range Rover SportCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 32.0% | 45.4% | 30% lower | 13 to 17 | 43,208 |
| 3 | Audi A6Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 29.6% | 41.5% | 29% lower | 9 to 18 | 142,066 |
| 4 | Audi A5Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 31.6% | 41.5% | 24% lower | 10 to 15 | 66,358 |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz E-ClassCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 28.6% | 37.5% | 24% lower | 6 to 19 | 186,068 |
| 6 | Toyota PriusCommon problems · Recalls | 26.4% | 33.8% | 22% lower | 5 to 18 | 250,668 |
| 7 | BMW X5Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 36.2% | 46.2% | 22% lower | 15 to 19 | 34,639 |
| 8 | Land Rover DiscoveryCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 35.6% | 44.6% | 20% lower | 10 to 24 | 220,756 |
| 9 | BMW 3 SeriesCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 34.6% | 42.3% | 18% lower | 7 to 22 | 537,570 |
| 10 | Volvo XC60Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 31.8% | 38.4% | 17% lower | 10 to 13 | 15,256 |
| 11 | Jaguar XFCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 34.7% | 41.4% | 16% lower | 11 to 14 | 26,369 |
| 12 | Audi A4Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 36.6% | 42.9% | 15% lower | 8 to 21 | 332,340 |
| 13 | Volkswagen TiguanCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 37.1% | 42.1% | 12% lower | 11 to 15 | 32,320 |
| 14 | SEAT LeonCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 35.8% | 40.5% | 12% lower | 9 to 16 | 52,653 |
| 15 | BMW 1 SeriesCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 37.8% | 42.4% | 11% lower | 9 to 18 | 222,714 |
| 16 | Volkswagen PassatCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 36.3% | 40.1% | 10% lower | 7 to 20 | 332,141 |
| 17 | Saab 9-3Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 42.1% | 46.1% | 9% lower | 15 to 17 | 23,591 |
| 18 | Toyota RAV4Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 43.2% | 47.0% | 8% lower | 16 to 20 | 31,263 |
| 19 | Mercedes-Benz C-ClassCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 38.5% | 41.6% | 8% lower | 8 to 20 | 263,417 |
| 20 | Audi A3Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 39.3% | 42.4% | 7% lower | 8 to 19 | 356,921 |
What stands out
- BMW 5 Series comes first: 28.4% against 41.3% for all cars at the same age and mileage, 31% lower (n=247,563).
- 33 of the 64 ranked cars fail less often than all cars at the same age and mileage.
- In the 20 shown, the difference from all cars runs from 31% lower to 7% lower.
- 2 other rows are within 5% of the first on the difference, so read close positions as level rather than as a strict order.
Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.
More rankings
All used car rankings · MOT fail rates by make and model · Common problems by model · Recalls by model · ULEZ by model
Looking at one car?
A ranking describes model generations, not the car in front of you. The VetTheCar Buying Report reads one car's MOT history, mileage and recalls and sets them against cars like it.
Source
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 28 September 2026.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources